What is IW4x

IW4x is a mod for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009), commonly referred to as a "client". This classification hints at the extensive capabilities of IW4x and similar mods.

IW4 is the internal name of MW2 - the fourth title produced by Infinity Ward.

IW4x is currently distributed throught the AlterWare Launcher for easy installation.

The mod adds features not found in the original game, including:

• Dedicated Servers:
  • Anyone can create public servers
  • Servers can be customized with unique rules, game modes, and maps through modding
  • Servers are shared through a decentralized node network
    • A master node is used to speed things up, but IW4x functions without central infrastructure
• Modding:
  • IW4x supports user-made mods (e.g., custom weapons) and maps
  • Textures can be modified
  • Server and client side scripting
  • Custom User Interfaces
• Quality of life:
  • Optional unlock all for starting with everything unlocked
  • Controller support
  • Unlocked console
    • Enables easy configuration of previously unavailable options
      • cg_fov and cg_fovscale for changing the Field of View
      • com_maxfps for setting a custom frame rate limit instead of the default 90
      • Many more dvars can be configured

How does IW4x work

IW4x works by loading patches, custom and extended functions into the original game binary.

IW4x consists of 2 main parts:

• The IW4x Client
  • General modifications to the game and its engine, written in C++
• The IW4x Rawfiles
  • Custom and modified game assets (menus, gamemodes, gsc logic,images, weapons, maps, ..)
  • The main programming language used here is GSC which stands for GameScriptCode, it has similiar syntax to C++. Although there is no full GSC documentation specifically for IW4, the language's use in modding-friendly games has led to the creation of various reference materials
    • Zeroy wiki
    • Modme scripting guide
    • Plutonium How to

How to install IW4x

We recommend installing IW4x using the AlterWare Launcher [Website, GitHub] for easy updating.

Installing IW4x manually is almost as easy, you need to acquire 3 things:

• A copy of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009), which you can get on Steam
• The IW4x Client
• And the IW4x Rawfiles

To install IW4x simply extract the client and rawfiles to your MW2 base directory, running iw4x.exe should now start up IW4x.